- San Marino have only won one match in their history, a 1-0 victory in 2004.
- Their results have improved slightly recently and they are no longer in last place.
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San Marino is no longer the lowest ranked team and there is now a nation that is technically below them.
The smaller teams sealed their first competitive win over Liechtenstein on Thursday night, after Nicko Sensoli capitalised on a moment of indecision in the visitors’ defence.
Prior to the victory, they had lost 198 of their 204 competitive matches and had suffered some tough defeats in recent memory, most notably the 10-0 thrashing at the hands of England in a World Cup qualifier in November 2021.
They suffered further defeats last year, including a 6-0 loss to Finland and two 4-0 defeats to Denmark and Slovenia.
However, recent results have been more encouraging. A 3-1 defeat to Denmark was extremely acceptable.
San Marino is no longer the lowest ranked team and there is now a nation that is technically below them.
The minnows have only won one match in their history: a 1-0 friendly in 2004.
In March of this year they drew with the Caribbean team Saint Kitts and Nevis and are no longer the bottom boys.
Eritrea, an East African nation, sits below them, having not qualified and not played a match in more than four years.
Ertirea last played in January 2020, when they lost to Sudan in a friendly match.
Upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Niger, Zambia, Congo, Morocco and Tanzania have been cancelled without any official statement from the Eritrean National Football Federation.
“I don’t know why this has happened or who is in charge. It’s clear that those at the top don’t take football seriously enough,” Eritrean midfielder Mohammed Saeid told BBC Sport Africa.
‘I feel very frustrated because there are many players emerging at the moment with Eritrean origins and many of them playing in Europe.
Eritrea is now unqualified as it has not played a match since losing to Sudan in 2020.
‘We could compete if given the chance, but when they see what is happening, will they really want to represent Eritrea in the future?
“One day I will be able to tell my children that I played for the Eritrean national team and that it was one of the most incredible experiences I have ever had. But now there are many players who are denied this opportunity.”